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Did Nile flooding sink two ancient cities?

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  • Rushdi Said

    (Former Head of The Geological Survey of Egypt)

Abstract

The discovery of the two cities of Herakleion and East Canopus under the waters of the Bay of Abu Qir (east of Alexandria, Egypt) stirred worldwide attention when it was first announced in the summer of 2000. Their disappearance some 1,250 years ago has been ascribed by Stanley, Goddio and Schnepp1 to a strong Nile flood that caused riverbank failure and the destruction of the two cities, rather than to the action of earthquakes, as was first proposed when the ruins were discovered2,3. But I believe that this interpretation is flawed, because no flood could have reached the Abu Qir Bay at the time of the disappearance of the two cities, as the Canopic branch of the Nile, along whose banks they were situated, had dried to a trickle more than 200 years earlier.

Suggested Citation

  • Rushdi Said, 2002. "Did Nile flooding sink two ancient cities?," Nature, Nature, vol. 415(6867), pages 37-38, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:415:y:2002:i:6867:d:10.1038_415037a
    DOI: 10.1038/415037a
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